Author: Willania Ortiz

A 60-year-old white woman has been arrested for racially harassing a Black woman in Bayonne, local police said. What We Know: Claudia Emanuele has been charged with prejudice, intimidation, and harassment from a disturbance captured on video that went viral after Tameka Bordeaux, 40, published the events to Facebook on Monday. Bordeaux mentioned, on Monday at 3 p.m., while she was “walking to the store,” she saw Emanuele talking to a mail carrier regarding the mail’s late delivery. As the victim addressed the woman to give “neighborly advice,” Emanuele immediately began yelling racial and sexist insults at the victim, causing…

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Brooklyn rapper Bobby Shmurda will be eligible for release from prison next month, the New York State Department of Corrections said on Monday. What We Know: Shmurda, whose government name is Ackquille Pollard, was convicted to seven years after declaring guilty to conspiracy and weapons possession charges related to what prosecutors state was a principal role in the GS9 gang, The New York Times reported. GS9 is a branch of the Crips in the East Flatbush section of Brooklyn. Authorities detained Shmurda in late 2014 after leaving a recording studio near Radio City Music Hall, only days after he played…

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Virginia state Sen. Ben Chafin has died after contracting the coronavirus, Senate Republicans said Friday. What We Know: The announcement from his office stated, “State Senator Augustus Benton (Ben) Chafin, Jr., a natural son of Russell County established in Southwest Virginia, passed away on January 1, 2021, from Covid-19 complications.” The Republican lawmaker’s family appreciated the VCU Medical Center in Richmond for “its strenuous care and heartfelt aid during his two weeks of medical assistance there.” Chafin, a cattle rancher, and attorney worked for Virginia’s 38th District. He was appointed to the state’s House of Delegates in 2013 before going…

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California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a plan Wednesday for schools to resume in-person teaching next spring. What We Know: Newsom’s plan will begin with the youngest students and those who have struggled most with remote learning while helping with $2 billion in state aid for coronavirus testing, personal protective equipment, and expanded classroom ventilation. “Safety is key. Just reopening a school for in-person instruction on its own is not going to address the issue of safety,” Newsom stated, ensuring penalties for schools that don’t obey safety rules. California’s largest teachers union President said he was happy Newsom is “finally realizing” the need…

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A Columbus police officer has been fired over the deadly shooting of a Black man in a state that has triggered a national outcry, the city’s director of public safety announced Monday. What We Know: The decision to let go of Adam Coy, who was recognized by officers as the police officer who shot and killed 47-year-old Andre Hill last week, comes after the city’s police chief described the shooting as “horrific” and suggested Coy’s dismissal. Two days after the shooting incident, Thomas Quinlan, Columbus Police Chief, announced that he was taking action to fire Coy by urging his termination to…

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Lil Pump has been banned from flying with JetBlue after allegedly refusing to comply with their mask policy. What We Know:  A Jet Blue airline representative advised in a statement, that a customer on one of their flights on Saturday took off his mask during the flight and refused to put it back on when asked. The statement did not mention the name of the person involved, but it has been confirmed that the 20-year-old rapper, born Gazzy Garcia, was the subject of the incident. Lil Pump traveled from Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles when he reportedly became “verbally abusive…

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A judge has further delayed the planned execution of the only woman on federal death row in the U.S. What We Know: In a decision that will possibly leave the Trump administration with no choice but to delay the execution beyond its term in office, a federal judge found an effort to reschedule it for January was unlawful. Lisa Montgomery, 52, was sentenced for killing 23-year-old Bobbie Jo Stinnett in the north-west Missouri town of Skidmore in December 2004. After choking Stinnett, who was eight months pregnant, Montgomery cut the baby girl from the womb with a kitchen knife. The…

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The trailer for the expected sequel Coming 2 America is finally here. What We Know: The new film marks the return of some cast members of the original 1988 classic film Coming to America, including Eddie Murphy as Akeem, Arsenio Hall as Semmi, and James Earl Jones as King Jaffe Joffer. Part two is expected to be delivered on Amazon Prime by March 5. Still, this holiday season did give fans of the original 1988 classic the trailer of the very anticipated sequel. In the trailer, Akeem, the recently crowned king of the fictionalized African country Zamunda, is determined to…

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A North Bergen man, who failed to get medical care for his infant daughter after dropping and fracturing her skull in 2018, has been charged with murder. What We Know: Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez stated Wednesday that a grand jury indictment charged 27-year-old Raul Torres on December 17 in Khaleesi Torres’ death. Khaleesi was his 4-month-old daughter who died from traumatic brain injuries in March 2018. Torres was charged with murder and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. The Jersey Journal previously reported that Khaleesi was unresponsive and not breathing when she was taken by ambulance to…

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A COVID-19 patient at a California hospital allegedly hit and killed his roommate with an oxygen tank because he was “angry when the victim started to pray,” the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said Wednesday. What We Know: Jesse Martinez, 37, has been arrested on an alleged hate crime murder and elder abuse, the sheriff’s office stated in a news release. The victim, an 82-year-old Hispanic man, shared a two-person room with Martinez at the Antelope Valley Hospital in Lancaster, located in northern Los Angeles County. According to the department, the men, who didn’t know each other, both received treatment…

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